


eglantine (it's just you and me)

by vultuers



Series: on the cruelest twines of fate [1]
Category: Naruto
Genre: Angst, Canon-Typical Violence, Fix-It of Sorts, M/M, Reincarnation, Smut, Soulmates, follows the plot of naruto with slight edits, follows their journey thru the years, up until The Last Fight anyway because after that i dont accept anything that happened
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-20
Updated: 2017-07-20
Packaged: 2018-12-04 18:03:04
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 11,880
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11560494
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/vultuers/pseuds/vultuers
Summary: There's a whole sea of unsaid words between them, etched into their palms, hiding in the back of their minds for years and years. The fate has been woven for each of them beforehand; for Sasuke to find his way out of the lies, for Naruto to finally follow the Moon leading his way, for both of them to find the middle ground.





	eglantine (it's just you and me)

**Author's Note:**

> welcome to my soulmate/reincarnation series for naruto; this being the first of the verse. this was originally supposed to be a Five Times fic but it, very obviously, spiraled out of control and now i'm left with plans for a number of fics, a soulmate verse that is taking over all of my free time. it's the opposite of a problem, really, when i can't go to sleep because i want to keep writing. expect more for this soon enough!
> 
> hope you enjoy!
> 
> ETERNAL THANKS to my wonderful beta [satu](https://twitter.com/satuwilhelmiina), and my Kink Friend O who helped me brainstorm. this is for [laura.](http://johnnysseo.tumblr.com/) i love y'all.

 

 

Naruto demanded they get ramen. Sasuke protested but when Naruto's slender fingers circled around his wrist he swallowed his irritation down and scowled instead, following in the blonde's footsteps towards Ichiraku's.

It's easy, falling into step with him, forgetting the weight he on his shoulders. The silence is pleasant, evening turning orange around them.

Sasuke can almost imagine he sees his future in the way Naruto's fingers press against his pulse point.

Before he even notices his feet have stopped dead in their tracks, breath caught in his throat. He tries to swallow it down but the mere sight of Naruto's relaxed face against the dipping orange of the sun is too much for his tiny heart.

"Sasuke?"

He hears the voice so very far away, jerks his hand back to himself, forces the intrusive, foreign thoughts away from his head. Ignores the way his throat feels tight. _He knows what he has to do_.

Naruto steps closer, fingers trying to reach for Sasuke's again but not making it. "Is everything alright?" His voice is soft and Sasuke feels his irritation spiking.

"Naruto," he starts and tries to summon _any_ hostility into his breaking voice, "just. Keep walking," he sighs and pushes the other, forcing him to take steps.

Naruto levels him with a look and mumbles something about idiotic prideful people but moves, doesn't take Sasuke's wrist anymore. Sasuke can almost feel the cold bitterness seeping into his bones again _; forget the orange warmth of his touch, you're an_ Uchiha _and you know what you have to do._

They eat together. Naruto makes a mess and Sasuke tries to scowl at him but he knows there's no feeling behind it. Naruto talks about his aspirations and his dreams of becoming the Hokage and Sasuke tries not to think about his.

There's a lull in their conversation.

Naruto leans closer suddenly, "You have something there," he says and swipes at the corner of Sasuke's lip with his thumb. Instinctively, Sasuke licks at it.

Neither say anything and the silence turns heavier with each second, Naruto staring at Sasuke's neck with burning cheeks and Sasuke tries to banish each and every conversation he's ever had with Kakashi about teenagers and hormones from his scrambled mind.

Come next month Sasuke is gone.

 

%

 

Naruto puts up a strong front, smiling and telling everyone that he will bring Sasuke back, he _will_ , and then they will both live in Konoha and it'll be alright because what else is there to say.

He has no idea what to tell himself, though. He _knows_ the way Kakashi looks at him; Kakashi has realized he's way too young to deal with this kind of a burden - responsibility, baggage, _promise -_ but he says nothing. Naruto hates him for that the tiniest bit.

In the dead of the night he tries not to remember all the ways Sasuke looked at him. He may be an airhead but he's not an idiot. Sasuke looked at him like he was an option he wanted to take but couldn't and it's eating him alive, making him question _why_ he didn't make himself more available. He could have prevented this. He could have made Sasuke a _home_ when he had none, _neither of them had none,_ and it would have been alright.

Now it's a series of _it's going to be alrights_ that Naruto is not sure he believes himself.

In the dead of the night Naruto screams into his pillow. He tries to forget all the ways Sasuke reacted when he took his hand, wrist, the front of his shirt. Naruto knows the beat of Sasuke's heart by memory, strong under his fingertips, pulse point breaking the charade of an emotionless Uchiha. He knows Sasuke recognized they were friends even if he scoffed every time Naruto called him that. He knows he was Sasuke's only one. Friend.

He tries not to think about the way he has been buying tomatoes even though he doesn't eat them. They're there, just in case. _Just in case._

In the dead of the night, Naruto cries.

 

%

 

They're not close to any of the big villages when Sasuke _feels_ the pulse of the chakra he could never, _ever_ , forget - not even if he wanted to, even though he wanted to amputate it from his mind so badly, to let it go and never look back but it's there, pulsing near them and he knows he has only minutes to react.

Sasuke tries to calculate the time it'll take for Karin to get back to him and comes to the conclusion that right now it doesn't really matter - the time is on his side, he thinks, _hopes_ , bites his lip and takes a deep breath.

Sasuke lunges into the woods, towards the chakra of the Sun he left behind.

He arrives at a clearing where Naruto is sitting, looking at the trees.

"Why can I feel you so clearly," the blonde breathes out and Sasuke takes note of his mesh shirt. It makes his throat clench in pure sorrow. "Even when you're so far away."

"Naruto," his own voice sounds unused and difficult.

"Sasuke," Naruto answers and whips his gaze towards the other. "What in the world are you wearing," he wrinkles his nose and gestures towards his whole getup, "you look like you walked into Orochimaru's closet and got lost."

"Are you not going to scream to me about friendship and Konoha," Sasuke tries to gather his, well, himself. It has been months since the last time they saw each other and the last time there were others accompanying them and the atmosphere wasn't anywhere near this gentle.

Sasuke tries very, very hard not to remember the feeling of his hand going through Naruto's chest.

Tries not to think about Naruto's beating heart under his fingertips.

It's not even the last time they met, not really, but it is the last time Sasuke remembers clearly. After that whole event everything has been a blur for him - there's a surprising amount of guilt in his very being, heavy on his shoulders as is the _uchiwa_ he carries on his back. All that's been happening has been just piling up as if he could carry whatever the world threw at him.

Then there's Itachi and. _Well_. Sasuke pushes that right out of his mind.

"Your brother died," Naruto says as if he's reading his thoughts.

Sasuke wants to gather the Chidori into his fingertips even if only to feel the reassuring crackle of the lightning.

"What are you doing here," he decides on answering instead. It feels like neither is acknowledging the conversations happening at once because there's a whole _ocean_ filled with unsaid words between them. Words that will never feel the warm wind nor the way Sasuke's lower lip tries not to tremble.

"I told you," Naruto says and his voice is surprisingly calm, if not empty, "I heard your brother died."

"Are you here to congratulate me," Sasuke grits out and his Sharingan whips into life, Mangekyou bleeding into his vision, red blurring the edges of his sanity. "What are you _doing here,"_ and the emptiness inside of him is filling with rage at the thought of his brother, his beloved _nii-san_ who, against all odds, decided to fucking drop dead and leave him alone with the gift he never really wanted; dark nights swallow all the hope he has of getting his mind back on its rails because all he has now is pure hatred and the emptiness, emptiness that feels like will never be filled again -

Naruto touches his wrist, fingers slotting against the pulse point.

Sasuke does not know when he moved and he isn't sure which thought scares him more; Naruto being swift enough to move without him noticing or the thought of him losing so much of his senses that he _doesn't_ notice.

The emptiness seems so meaningless all of a sudden. The Sun is looking straight at him.

"Sasuke," his voice is soft and for some reason Sasuke isn't shaking Naruto's hand off, "I'm here to say I'm sorry. I feel your loss, I'm, I'm sorry. I know what he meant to you. I wish there could have been another way."

Sasuke feels like Naruto punched him in the stomach, fucking _hopes_ he'd gotten punched in the stomach because this whole situation is getting a little too emotional for his liking.

A strangled "What," pushes its way out of his mouth and he doesn't know where all of his hatred disappeared. "What do you mean you feel my loss," he asks, voice small.

Unconsciously, his other hand reaches for the first seal of the Chidori but Naruto's grip is tight against the other hand, rendering it useless.

Naruto's face softens, "I _felt_ the exact moment your heart broke."

Something in Sasuke's mind _snaps._

The emptiness is long forgotten, rage filling it to the brim; he yanks his hand away and gets the first seals going, lighting gathering into his fingertips like he's an angry god ready to bestow his judgment down upon Earth. The look in his eyes promises nothing short of insanity, emotions a crumpled mess of thoughts he wants to bury and forget; face splitting into a grin that borders on painful.

"Sasuke," Naruto tries but it's too late.

Sasuke is putting all of his strength into the punch, the air getting heavy around them. Naruto dodges the Chidori and it goes whirling past him, splintering the trees behind him. Idly Sasuke realizes he wasn't aiming properly at all.

"I know you know about the way Hashirama and Madara -"

" _Fuck off,"_ Sasuke growls but he's too far gone to think rationally. He doesn't know when _Naruto_ started thinking rationally but maybe it's not about that, maybe it's the way Naruto seems to see through him every fucking time.

Naruto dodges his punches, takes hold of his arms and flips him onto the ground. He pins Sasuke down with ridiculous ease, fingers against pulse points not so gentle anymore.

" _You fuck off!"_ his voice is breaking but he refuses to look away from Sasuke's eyes; it's an idiotic move on his part for there is no reason Sasuke _wouldn't_ place him under a genjutsu. Sasuke breathes heavily, considers the possibility, but seeing the tears clinging to Naruto's lashes, decides against it.

"I'm not coming back to Konoha!" he screams instead and it feels like they're thirteen again.

"I don't _want_ you to come back!"

Something in Sasuke breaks and he's almost certain it's his already broken heart. "Then go! Leave me alone! Fuck off back to your beloved village and let me fucking die in peace!"

Naruto doesn't even try to register the words or to address the absurdity of the whole sentence, "Fuck you Sasuke! You don't understand anything," his voice cracks again and the tears spill from the corners of his eyes, falling down onto Sasuke's face like small raindrops made up of bottled up emotions.

Sasuke tries to struggle but only manages to get his body the tiniest bit upright.

"Don't you fucking dare come back," Naruto grits as he tightens the hold on Sasuke's wrist - the bone under his grip is bordering on breaking but he doesn't really care, "Don't go where -"

Sasuke cuts him off, "Where? Where _what, Naruto?_ What the fuck do you want? What are you doing here if not to talk me into walking back into the village, to get, I don't know, fucking _ramen_ together, to forget all the shit the government has pulled, to forget my clan _died_ for the fucking Leaf like it was nothing, to forget my brother took -"

Naruto pushes against him, body hard with anger, "Shut up! Don't you fucking dare to forget. Don't, fuck. Sasuke -"

"Spit it out, you useless fuck!"

" _I_ don't want to go back!"

Sasuke is speechless.

Naruto grits his teeth, "Fuck you," he starts, breathes heavily and _that_ is the very moment Sasuke realizes just how close they are. Sasuke's struggling has brought him closer; breath ghosting over his face, red eyes trying desperately to look _anywhere_ but at the flushed cheeks, clear eyes filled with emotion, lips open with angry teeth marks on the inside -

Naruto's eyes are locked on Sasuke's lips and it's way, _way_ too much right now.

Sasuke pushes against Naruto, closer and closer until they're a hair's breadth away from each other; it's so close, the perfect chance and the perfect excuse, but. Naruto is caught off guard just enough for the Uchiha to push him off.

" _Usuratonkachi_ ," Sasuke grits out as he brings his elbow to the other's stomach, "get off of me."

Naruto coughs, "Sasuke, wai-"

"Karin will be here soon," he says and spares a glance towards Naruto's flushed face, turns his back on the other and stalks off.

 

%

 

There are truths Naruto would rather, maybe, possibly not know.

These include but are not limited to the truth that eventually he'll start losing people. Eventually, he won't be able to look Kakashi in the eyes for the grief is bottling up there, has been bottling up there since the moment Kakashi realized Naruto is carrying the promise he made with all of his might - he has been picking up pieces of Sasuke's loss into his own soul like they belong there. Kakashi's grief is Naruto's grief.

He won't be able to hear Sakura's voice anymore. There will come a time Sakura will realize all that has been going on inside of his head, outside of his head, in the woods where he travels to _think_ only to find himself crying more often than not; feverish dreams plagued by a man he never knew, a crow circling over his head with protectiveness he doesn't, couldn't, earn. Sakura will be mad. Sakura will only see the tomoe over his heart and blame it on Sasuke with a breaking heart.

Eventually he'll hear the death rattle in the lungs of one of his friends. Eventually he will reach the point of no return.

He won't be able to walk through the gates of Konoha after he reaches his breaking point.

Naruto knows his leave won't be nearly as dramatic as Sasuke's but he knows this like he knows the seals of the Rasengan. He feels the emotions that are beginning to surface from the depths of his heart.

Sorrow. Anger. _Betrayal_.

Like Sasuke - no, like the _Uchihas -_ he has been betrayed by the Leaf. It has been a long time coming, he knows, and there is not much he can _do_ about it anymore. He realized it between the moment his own heart took a beat and Sasuke's skipped one. It's his own anger fueled by Sasuke's. There has always been a gnawing at the back of his head; why were two kids without families left alone, why did _no one_ in the damn village care, why did no one tell him what he was, what he carried inside himself, how _could_ they have treated him the way they did?

It's in the way Itachi turns the hitai-ate in his hands in Naruto's dreams.

There is the truth that hurts him the most, though, and that Naruto wants to keep the closest to his heart as not let it slip from his mind.

It's the truth of Indra and Ashura, Madara and Hashirama. The truth of the Sun and the Moon, the burning in his palm whenever he's closer to Sasuke. It's the burning in his _heart_ that tells him whenever the other is nearby, whenever he's sad, whenever he's angry; it's the way their hearts beat in sync even when they're miles and miles apart.

It's the truth that, like Madara and Hashirama had been _destined,_ him and Sasuke are.

It's in his soul, lodged between his ribs. The very essence of Sasuke.

His only one.

 

%

 

"Sasuke? You okay?" Suigetsu asks one night when he wakes from his sleep in the dead of the night and spots Sasuke still awake.

Sasuke levels him with a stare. The night is dark; the skies empty of celestial beings, the forest ominous around them. They found a small cabin, which they have taken over for the night. Karin and Juugo are sleeping in a small loft while Suigetsu and Sasuke chose to stay on the floor level.

Sasuke hasn't slept properly in three days - he knows it's already hindering his ability to fight and lessening the time he can manage using his Sharingan but he has chosen to avoid the reoccurring dreams he has of Itachi. Not enough time has passed since he learned the truth behind his brother's actions - from an outside source - and there is no way he's going to meet his brother's kind gaze in his dreams.

He almost wishes Madara would appear. Idly he remembers one dream where the man tried to tell him something but ended up with Itachi banishing him like a guard dog.

"Are you seriously asking that," he grunts at Suigetsu who just shrugs and sits next to Sasuke on the table.

Sasuke turns away from him and runs his hand absentmindedly over his neck, shoulders, chest. He can almost feel Haku's needles piercing his body again; the coldness seeping into his bones again, Naruto's horrified gaze behind him.

He feels the phantom pain sometimes, when he's thinking too much. Sasuke absolutely detests the memory because it reminds him of the first time he did something without complete and utter control. He remembers the feeling, the - later confirmed to have been false - thoughts circling his mind, _Itachi would let him die,_ and the _need_ to rebel against all that it stood for. He remembers the panicked thought _what can I do,_ and without much more thought Sasuke had been there, between.

Between the needles and Naruto. Between Haku and Naruto. Between all that's bad in the world and Naruto.

"Man you... haven't been sleeping," Suigetsu says and it's so odd coming from him. It's not like they're _friends._

Sasuke sighs and runs a hand over his face.

"I thought you'd be okay, considering, well, your enhanced eyes and," Sasuke almost bristles at that, "but you haven't really been using them? At all? And I don't think your lack of sleep is helpin'."

Suigetsu turns his head away from Sasuke's profile, stares at the dark lake across the field. It's a pretty view, during the day, when the night doesn't look so much like it's trying to eat the horizon.

Sasuke regards him for a moment and scoffs. Idly he wonders about Kubikiribocho and talking about Zabuza but catches himself, snaps his mouth shut before any words can escape.

"Drink your goddamn water and go to sleep," he grumbles instead.

 

%

 

Sasuke tries his best not to - but does anyway - dream about his brother. There is a certain feeling of longing mixed with grief whenever he sees his brother's warm eyes and calm, small smile directed at him, be it reality or not.

He wants to hold Itachi, to be _held_ by Itachi, to climb on his back and eat the eggs he makes for him, to train with him, to comfort him. His dreams are usually short. He tries to grab for his brother but his hands go through him, Itachi muttering words Sasuke can't make sense of. He wishes he could be able to feel the goddamned forehead poke, just once.

Sasuke didn't know what he expected but one night during his restless sleep the dream feels way too heavy for it to be normal.

In his dream Itachi says, "I have been taking care of him," and Sasuke doesn't need to ask _who._

He feels Itachi's fingers on his forehead and chokes back a sob when Itachi mumbles, "Sorry Sasuke. Maybe next time," and the sentence feels like it's left hanging and Sasuke tries his best not to finish it when he's awake but can't, for the life of him, stop himself from muttering,

_Maybe next time I'll be able to protect you, too._

 

%

 

Everything has been happening _too much._

Somehow the sight of Sasuke's red and black cloak makes Naruto's chest tight; there are barely visible stains on its fluttering hem and Naruto knows, in the back of his mind, that this cloak is not the one Sasuke was given. It's worn and older, ragged at places that only years of use could produce. The odd memories of hazy dreams of crows fill his mind and he is at a loss.

"What are you doing here," Sasuke says and Naruto feels like that's the only thing Sasuke says to him anymore.

"Madara," he starts and looks glances over his shoulder; he ran off from Kakashi and Sakura under the pretense of getting something to eat and he knows he doesn't have much time, "well. It's not Madara. But Madara, the man with the mask, declared war on the Five Great Nations."

Sasuke levels him with a look, "I know this. What of it?"

Naruto bites his lip, uncharacteristically quiet guilt dripping from his voice, "It's because of me."

Something in Sasuke's eyes flash but he says nothing. Naruto notes that the man doesn't have his sword with him; only the cloak that carries his brother's ghost in it and, in time it will carry Sasuke's, too.

Naruto takes a tentative step closer because even if Sasuke doesn't have his weapons with him he is in no means _weaponless._ There's a certain edge of insanity in the way Sasuke holds himself now, months since they last crossed paths. His mind seems unsteady and his eyes are shadowed with tiredness, movements frantic but at least he's not using his Sharingan this time around.

"I'm going to die," Naruto states in a way that it's an universal truth.

"I'm going to kill you," Sasuke answers, cocks his head but makes no other move to stop Naruto from creeping closer, "if you do," and he lets out a breath, body visibly relaxing when Naruto steps into his personal space.

There's a wave of irritation coming off of Sasuke and a reluctant flutter of eyelashes as Naruto leans his head the tiniest bit against his shoulder.

"I kind of," Naruto starts and lets his arms hang on his sides, "want it to be you. To do it."

Sasuke is quiet, body tensing under the words. "Don't come see me again," he says. Naruto notes they haven't yelled at each other the whole conversation and crosses it off in his head as a good thing.

"Sasuke," he starts but cuts himself off. "I'll. Not yet. I want to go against you full on. But I will. Let you do it," the words are hard to get out and Sasuke's body is tensing even more, hands hovering over Naruto's back.

" _Don't come see me again,"_ he repeats instead of addressing any of the insanity Naruto is spurting. Sasuke is holding himself with a weird sense of anger and Naruto tries not to dwell on the _hope_ of why it is.

"Yeah," Naruto answers instead of pressing the subject. He smiles against Sasuke's shoulder and knows that this is possibly the first and last time they're peacefully like this. "I wanted to tell you something but. Maybe next time."

Something in Sasuke shifts and he pushes Naruto off with anger that wasn't there before. The insane glint returns to his eyes and for the first time Naruto wonders about the things Sasuke has _seen_ happening in Akatsuki. Red eats away the black of his eyes and Naruto has no idea what he said wrong.

"I'm going to kill Danzo," Sasuke grits out and turns on his heel.

It' so much like the last time they met Naruto wants to cry.

 

%

 

His Susanoo is roaring above him and there's blood under his fingernails, on his face, on the clothes Orochimaru provided him with. The calm of the battle has settled into his very being, his head making the smallest movements possible to address the situation;

there's no guilt when he pushes through Karin's upper body and finishes Danzo off.

Sharingan swirling he grins as Karin's face shows utter betrayal, no feeling of remorse reaching him. He cocks his head and looks her dead in the eyes, lets the tiniest laugh loose.

There's a stray memory of Naruto's desperate yell in the forest when Sakura arrives, promises to leave Konoha for him. It twitches in his head like a migraine attack; why do these people feel _responsible_ for him, why do they _lie_ to get him to return, why, _why._

He wants to push his hand through her chest, fingers twitching towards Kusanagi, words escaping his lips.

There's also the idle thought of _where is the bastard anyway_ but he does not dwell on it, not at all.

 

%

 

Naruto sees the way Kakashi's eyes flash when he realizes there is no saving Sasuke. He sees the way Sakura's heart breaks when she turns her back to them. He sees the way Sasuke's irritation spikes _and_ the way his Mangekyou is making his vision blur; Naruto's gaze does not linger on his painful eyes but rather on the way his blood stained fingers curl around Kusanagi.

"Are you going to become the hero they always wanted," Sasuke is saying, white shirt stained dark, grin back in place. Even his teeth seem to be red, left eye bleeding, "and finish me off here or. Become my victim?," and _that's_ the real question. Naruto's heart skips a beat.

"Neither," Naruto hears himself say with the kind of certainty that is conveying _not yet._

"I'm not coming back with you," Sasuke says as if he's asking a question.

Naruto rolls his shoulder, "I'm not asking you to," and he's off the ground, Sasuke's smirk splitting his face, Kusanagi ready to clash against Naruto's kunai.

He's not holding back when he pulls his leg back and, dodging Sasuke's sword, kicks him in his side. It's a weird feeling; he feels a new sense of knowledge in the back of his mind whenever Sasuke charges, already knowing when and how he'll strike.

Sasuke feels it too and catches Naruto's leg.

It's a spur of movement; twists and turns that lead them nowhere even though the mere pressure of their attacks split the rock under them. Something in Sasuke feels _alive_ when he's battling Naruto all out. His fingers are turning numb from excitement as Naruto seems to overpower, to lead the fluidity of the battle.

"What did you want to tell me," Sasuke breathes against Naruto's arm when he leads a punch away from his face.

Naruto tries to slash Sasuke with his kunai but Sasuke is already anticipating it, "Not here," he grits out, "here, I'll only tell you this."

Sasuke takes a hold of his arms, disregarding Kusanagi, and throws Naruto to the ground. He doesn't stay there long, only lets out all the air from his lungs with a painful gasp and jumps up.

"Don't become Madara," he breathes and spits out blood, gathers the Rasengan in his palms, ready to finish this whole charade of a fight.

"What the fuck are you talking about," Sasuke growls but he _knows_ what Naruto means. The meaning behind those words is clear to them, and maybe only to them, _don't lose yourself like he did. Don't lose sight of what's important. Don't forget the Moon on your palm._

Sasuke feels the lightning on his palm and bites back the anger that's making him want to stop this once and for all.

"You know full well," Naruto laughs with a weird easiness from across the clearing.

"Stop acting like Hashirama then," Sasuke grits out and his legs are moving, heels hitting against the rock, vision blurring.

_Stop acting like the hero they want if you want to come with me. Prove yourself to me. The Sun on your palm means nothing if you don't follow it._

Their hands meet.

 

%

 

Sasuke's mind reels back ito the  fight between him and Naruto, to the way Naruto compared him to Madara. The insanity, the eagerness to avenge, the way Sasuke wants to carry the Rinnegan in his eyes, the impossible dream. He knows, instinctively, that Naruto _meant_ that he doesn't want to lose him. It's a ridiculous thought, however, so he has pushed it out of his mind.

But, becoming like Madara is probably the least of his problems.

There's the whole mess of Naruto outright lying to Sasuke , saying he doesn't want to return to Konoha, yet he has not taken the steps to actually come with him. Sasuke has no clue as to why Naruto would want to run away - and _that_ is a lie, _he knows,_ Sasuke has a pretty concrete idea of _why,_ but as long as he doesn't hear it out loud it doesn't exist. His life has been woven of lies, so why not this as well.

His life has always been a cruel joke, he muses to himself as he looks at the ridiculously huge cloak Itachi is wearing. Sasuke's wearing his brother's cloak and his brother is _right fucking there,_ in clothes that don't _fit,_ and somehow it's the most absurd part of the whole situation.    

Sasuke wants to rip Itachi's necklace off of him.

Itachi had said, clear as a day, _I'm sorry Sasuke. This is the last time,_ but there he is, in front of him, and there's also the gnawing feeling of just wanting to obliterate himself and the apparent ghost of his brother for good. If keeping Itachi away from this world takes Sasuke's life then so be it.

Itachi's body is disintegrating into nothingness, familiar red eyes circled by black, face full of cracks; his hair pulled back like it has always been. Sasuke can't fucking breathe. He can't _move._

His brother is stepping closer to him, hand outstretched, words dropping from his mouth so unlike him; no more short sentences and glances that are meant to tell him everything yet explain nothing. Now he's in front of him, _disintegrating into nothingness,_ and saying _you don't ever have to forgive me._

Itachi's fingers curl against the back of his head.

Their foreheads touch.

"I will love you always," he says and smiles in that tiny way of his.

Sasuke's heart will explode any moment, he's sure of this, this is worse than the first time Itachi died, this is _so much worse,_ because Itachi is, for once, holding him close instead of putting space between them. This is the last time Sasuke will ever see his brother's kind eyes or feel the weight of his fingers on his head. It's heartbreaking, it's killing him, there is no coming back from this and he fears this is the point where he will finally snap and take steps to become more like all the great men in his family; Madara is, for sure, waiting for him in the back of his head. There's no more promises of _maybe next time,_ because this time it's for good.

It's only a few minutes away. Sasuke blinks and his tears spill as Itachi's fingers lose their weight.

 

%

 

"Didn't I tell you not to come to me anymore," Sasuke asks as Naruto stalks closer to the other. There's no tentativeness anymore, only steps heavy with regret and sorrow.

Naruto takes a deep breath and sits next to Sasuke on the rock he's occupying. "Your broth -"

"Don't. Just shut up," Sasuke grits out and looks at the horizon with a strong will not to cry. The sky is turning orange and it's like all those years ago when they got ramen and Sasuke had impossible hopes for the future. He tries not to think of them, of the small chance they could _still_ happen; it's too long ago and the horizon is not familiar to them anymore.

"I'm sorry."

"For what? For Edo Tensei? For my messed up family? For the fact that the man you keep comparing me to is ravaging all of this world?" Sasuke snaps out, "What are you sorry for, exactly, Naruto? And, god forbid me, if your fucking answer starts to sound _at all_ like the shit Hashirama spewed about peace and goodness of humanity I will _end_ you."

Naruto is quiet for a moment, "I'm sorry for not being there for you."

Sasuke's heart drops.

Naruto feels it. "Aah, I don't know if you have noticed that before."

"Noticed _what,"_ and his voice is definitely not breaking.

"The way I can, and you, probably too, tell whenever the other feels strong emotions," his face is closed off. Sasuke misses the days it looked like the Sun, "It was the same for them. I know you don't want to hear about them but, Sasuke, Hashirama talked to me about this. You would have hated his brother," he laughs bitterly.

"Why the fuck are you talking about those dead Hokages like they're your goddamn friends," Sasuke barks and clenches his fist.

Naruto regards him for a moment, "I have seen dreams of them. Except they're not dreams, not really, I know they are different. They're like memories of things that never happened, memories of," he hesitates but forces it out, "Our memories. From before. Kind of. Have you not seen," he licks his lips nervously, "Madara, at all?"

Sasuke stops. Naruto takes the chance to shuffle closer, legs pressing against each other.

Black eyes bore into blue ones, voice strong against all odds, "No."

Naruto purses his lips. There's all the words between the things Sasuke is not saying, in the way Sasuke looks away and clenches his jaw.

 _My brother was there, instead,_ but it's left hanging unsaid. _He told me about it. He didn't want to let Madara near me._

"I see," Naruto laughs and his fingers hover over Sasuke's and Sasuke's heart is hurting so badly it's killing him. His lungs won't cooperate, pulse skyrocketing and drowning his ridiculous hope.

Sasuke scowls and takes Naruto's hand and for a moment he's sure his body moved on its own.

Idly he realizes the last one to touch him at all was the ghost of his brother.

Naruto positively _beams._ "Ne, Sasuke," he starts and laces their fingers together and Sasuke wants to bury himself right now. "I still have that something to tell you, but first, I have to. Let you know this. You're possibly my only friend who understands."

"Understands what?" Sasuke has no idea where the conversation is going, how it flipped from Edo Tensei to Naruto once again claiming they're _just friends_.

"Why I want to leave Konoha," Naruto breathes out with a sad smile and it sounds suspiciously like it's the first time he's saying it out loud. "They. The Leaf, they. Let me down. My whole life has been hell because of them. It's an unspoken truth but everyone, from Shikamaru and Sakura to Iruka to Tsunade and Kakashi _know_ that they've done something wrong. Yet, nobody says anything. And what good is the dream of becoming Hokage doing to me? I don't want to walk in their footsteps and be forced to make decisions that leave _children_ without homes, alone."

Sasuke doesn't know how to answer, breath caught in his throat. His heart is hammering in his chest against the words _not a lie, not a lie, not a lie._

"I want to leave but I can't, not yet. I can't let Madara do what he's doing. Sasuke," Naruto's gaze on him is so gentle it is leaving Sasuke breathless, "when that is over, can we."

The sentence stops there. Sasuke wonders when Naruto lost so much of his light; the burden is clear on his shoulders. Sasuke wonders when Naruto started trusting him enough to look straight into his eyes without any reserve of his Sharingan's power and the Kyuubi.

Silence falls on them and Sasuke's mouth is suddenly so very dry.

 _Can we what,_ he wants to say but no words come out. Instead, he stares at Naruto like it's the first time he's seeing him. His face looks worn and tired, smile on the sad side and a blooming bruise on his jaw. The whiskers on his left cheek are crossed by a shallow, barely noticeable scar, pulling on the skin there the tiniest bit. Naruto's hair is a bit longer than he remembers it being; the edges of his bangs almost falling over his eyes - and _his_ _eyes_.

His eyes - after all these years - make Sasuke breathless still. They're the most beautiful bright blue, clear, understanding, _alive_ eyes Sasuke has ever seen.

He doesn't know which one of them started leaning closer but there's a beat when he realizes Naruto's warm breath is ghosting over his lips, Naruto's fingers tighter around his own, Naruto's soft voice whispering _Sasuke,_ Naruto's aura enveloping him like a blanket that leaves no one but them in the world. Naruto's other hand coming to rest on his thigh. His eyelids flutter closed and that's exactly when Naruto pulls back.

" _Uh_ ," Naruto says intellectually and Sasuke feels the creeping murderous edge in the back of his mind. "One of my bunshin was taken out, I have to," he scrambles to his feet, cheeks red with embarrassment and Sasuke considers the one sided deal Naruto made about ending his life.

Naruto staggers away, almost trips over himself, cursing softly.

Sasuke is left sitting on the rock and if he presses his lips against his left palm then that's no one's business.

 

%

 

"We need to do it together," Naruto grits out - smiling and certain - as they're standing in front of the whole mess of Obito, Madara, _Hagoromo, Kaguya_. The reincarnation. _Sun and Moon_.

Sasuke ponders his own wants, plans. The Kages, the Rinnegan, his revenge, _coup d'état._ He sees the way Naruto is panting, the weird willfulness in his eyes. He stops for a split second and considers the options, considers the unknown factor that is _Naruto,_ considers the question the blonde asked him. Sasuke is so very tired, so very human, so very empty.

 _Are you coming with me after this,_ he wants to ask. _It'd be enough,_ he does not dare think about. _I can't do all of this without you,_ he drowns that thought before it can surface any more than it already has.

"He said I'm an embarrassment to the Uchiha clan," he says instead.

Naruto nods, smiles like he understands.

This time they're off together.

 

%

 

Sasuke hears the mumbled words out of Madara's mouth. It's a small sound but it's enough to punch him in the gut.

"You've always been that glass half full idiot," his ancestor is saying, breathing labored, "But... Just maybe, that was the. Right way to do things."

Sasuke frowns. The rest of the conversation is too soft to make sense of but he catches Hashirama's "- to immortality, that we'd share no matter what, we'd have to exchange our cups," and there's a gentle look on his face. Sasuke doesn't want to see the Shodai Hokage looking like that.

Madara whispers something and then Sasuke is the last Uchiha once again.

 

%

 

Naruto is serious as they're standing in the Valley of the End.

"Do you still want to die?" Sasuke asks and his voice is disgustingly soft. Naruto had gotten mad at him when he brushed Sakura off with genjutsu, _again,_ but really, he should be proud Sasuke didn't repeat the treatment he gave to Karin.

Naruto bristles, "I never _wanted_ to die-"

Sasuke cuts him off, "You asked me to _kill you_ when you _wanted to die,"_ and the words hold all the emotion he has been carrying with him for years.

"It was a precaution!" he's yelling and this is. Not really how Sasuke wanted things to turn out. Madara and Kaguya and Obito and the rest of them are already behind them, even the Infinite Tsukuyomi is gone, the world at peace again. Sasuke still has his plans but after hearing the walking corpses of the Shodai Hokage and his own apparent fate, the wheels in his head started turning.

There's a different way, he muses to himself and thinks about Itachi.

He thinks about the way his brother would have handled this situation and feels irrationally angry at him for dying. He thinks about the way Itachi's eyes were filled with tears when he left the Uchiha household for the last time. Thinks about the way Itachi would have wanted him to act even if he said he'd love him no matter what. Thinks about the weight of Itachi's necklace, resting in his pocket.

Itachi was what a Hokage _should_ have been. Itachi had his way of handling things and Sasuke is going to make sure that everyone recognizes what his brother did.

"Fuck your precautions!" he hears himself shout and this is _really_ not going to the way Sasuke wanted. "I had to live with the thought of _ending you!"_

Naruto is taken aback.

"And now all of this is behind us and you asked me, asked - _fuck,_ you just said _can we_ and left it there! What do you want, the fuck do you want? You said you want to leave Konoha and I don't know _what that means,"_ Sasuke's voice is angry and he's taking steps towards the blonde.

In the far back of his mind he regards the setting Sun behind them and a odd sense of nostalgia washes over him.

Naruto looks at him, eyes wide and clear and for the first time since they were thirteen - Naruto yelling _Come back home! Sasuke, can't you see, it'll all be alright! Come back, I miss you! -_ the resolution he used to hold in his eyes is back.

Sasuke steps into his space but Naruto's body stays relaxed and he shudders at the trust Naruto is putting into him.

"Sasuke," he says and smiles and it is as if the burden he has been carrying is being lifted away, "I'll tell you the thing I've been meaning -"

"Stop fucking smiling, you moron! I hate you," Sasuke's mouth is moving before he can think, "I don't want to hear _maybe next time_ ever again, certainly not from your lips!"

Naruto's smile falters.

He's breathing hard, anger tightly holding onto him and he can't make himself calm down, "Do you want to come with me? Do you realize what that even _means?"_

The blonde's eye twitches, "I do! Do you think I would have asked if I didn't?"

"You never asked to begin with! And even so, you're _okay_ with that?" Sasuke is fairly certain they're not thinking about the same thing so he adds, helpfully yelling, "You're okay with bestowing revenge on the people who wronged you? Because that's what my _fucking goal_ is," he takes a deep breath, fists clenching.

" _Ye_ s _!"_

Sasuke stops.

"I'm," Naruto starts, collects himself and mutters with a frown, "I've been thinking about it- Strategies, ideas, I want to. Just, with you, anything."

Sasuke feels reanimated as his rage spills over.

"I don't want to be the reason for your fall, fucking hell!" he pulls his fist back and tries to punch Naruto who, as expected, just catches his fist. "I don't want you to make decisions because of _me,"_ and there's a repulsive amount of guilt and worry hidden behind those words so he swings again for good measure.

Naruto swings back and the hit actually lands. "I don't mean it like that, _teme,_ why can't you get it!"

Sasuke is panting hard and holding his bruising jaw. "How can I get _anything_ when you don't fucking _explain",_ he grits out and charges.

Naruto's mouth purses. He catches Sasuke's wrists, growls, " _does this explain,_ " and rams their lips together.

It hurts. Sasuke is fairly certain he tastes blood from his own lips as Naruto pushes against him, all teeth and bruising touches. Sasuke pushes back because there's no way in hell he's letting Naruto lead.

It hurts but Hell will freeze over before Sasuke cares because this is the only thing he has been waiting for to happen since he realized his own morals and dreams were twisted by lies.

Sasuke's hands circle to grip Naruto's hips and he opens his lips, responding into the kiss and that's when he feels their connection.

He's sure Naruto has been feeling it the whole time because he doesn't react in any noticeable way but, to Sasuke, the feeling of burning in his palm, in his _heart,_ his dizzy head and the animalistic way he _wants_ is entirely new. There's a pooling heat in his abdomen when Naruto manhandles him, pushing and pulling, lips parting, hot breath filling his senses.

Naruto licks into his mouth and Sasuke is sure he's losing his mind because suddenly there is no thought in his mind that isn't _Naruto._ He hears the tiny gasp the blonde makes when he drags his fingers over his hipbones, under his shirt, against his ribs.

Sasuke answers Naruto's eager lips with bruising kisses and wandering hands and it's so much better than he even dared to hope for.

" _Sas-,"_ Naruto is cut off when Sasuke pushes against him aggressively to drown the sound. He nibs at Naruto's lip, drags his nails over Naruto's abs, pushes his leg between the other's. Naruto's legs wobble the tiniest bit and Sasuke manhandles him to the ground.

Sasuke settles in between his legs, doesn't even notice how hard the rock is against them when Naruto _moans_ as their groins press against each other. Sasuke rips Naruto's shirt into pieces, mesh giving under his fingers easily. He licks his way from Naruto's lips to his neck, chest, bites down on the soft part where neck meets shoulder.

Naruto gasps and grinds against him, hips thrusting helplessly. Sasuke repeats the movement when his hands work Naruto's pants open, yanking them down. Naruto's fingers rip Sasuke's own getup open, mind wandering to the possibilities of what they could do with Sasuke's obi but the thoughts scatter as soon as Sasuke presses his body flush with his.

They intertwine their fingers and it feels like electricity going off. Sasuke pushes his left hand, Naruto's right palm - their marked hands - over Naruto's head as his other hand continues its trek on Naruto's body.

Sasuke feels lightheaded; it's _so much_ because this is _exactly_ what he has been dreaming of for forever.

Naruto uses his left hand to press against Sasuke's nipple and he gains a groan out of it. Smirking, he pushes his body up the tiniest bit to catch Sasuke's earlobe in his mouth.

Sasuke trembles, excited and lusting. He decides there's been enough of this foreplay - it's not like they haven't been dancing around each other the past few _years -_ as his hand reaches lower, taking Naruto's leaking cock into his hand.

Naruto moans.

Sasuke drags his hand terribly slowly up and down, earning a cry from the blonde's parted lips. He pushes his thumb over the head, dragging precum around the shaft. Naruto's back arches and Sasuke takes the chance, pushing their cocks together and his hand over both of them.

His hips thrust as Naruto's hand comes to cover them better, lips trying to find each other but ending up on missed kisses on the neck, jaw, cheek. Naruto is vocal, husky voice repeating Sasuke's name over and over again, cursing under his breath, begging for release.

Naruto bites into Sasuke's neck when he comes, Sasuke's name leaving his lips like a prayer.

Suddenly Sasuke remembers the way Naruto talked about knowing each others' feelings when Naruto's orgasm washes over him, too, and he's coming and groaning, cum spilling between them.

Heavy breaths fill the air as it begins to cool around them.

"That explains absolutely nothing," Sasuke mutters but drags Naruto's swollen lips against his anyway with more force than necessary as if Naruto would object.

Naruto takes a deep breath, mumbles against his lips, "I don't want to go killing them off but if that is the only way that seems profitable then I'm willing to listen to your ideas. I have some of my own. I want justice for myself and for _all,"_ he stresses and it sounds meaningful, "that suffered because of Konoha's mistreatment."

Sasuke feels breathless and it has more to do with Naruto's words than the way he's nibbling at his lower lip.

Naruto smirks and the Sun seems to shine again.

 

%

 

Sasuke remembers laughing at Naruto's dream as if his own wasn't ludicrous at all.

To kill his brother and be done with the universe.

What a joke.

Naruto's dream had been almost as much of a joke, really; to become the one to run the whole of Konoha while not passing any exams or showing any kind of exceptionality in the beginning save for the stubbornness that never left him.

Sasuke remembers the first time the thought of _this is who I want on my side_ passed his head. It didn't even feel like his own thought - in the light of all the bullshit they are going through he's still not _sure_ it was his. He had been projecting many of Madara's ideals into his ways without realizing it so the possibility of it being Madara's as well is very real.

Something in that thought, however, does not sit well with Sasuke.

Sasuke remembers - in painful detail - the first time Naruto yelled at him _come home!,_ and his mind felt like it was ripped in two. Something in Naruto's voice had been so foreign, alluring to follow, but the need to annihilate Itachi had been stronger.

He still remembers how hard it was to turn his back on Naruto. Every single time.

Sasuke's dream came true and he's left with a heart full of regrets because of that.

He fears Naruto's dream _won't_ come true and it will leave his heart full of regrets, too.

 

%

 

"Are you really with me because you feel like you have to," Sasuke asks one night, voice small, scowl in place, when they're setting up camp. Neither have contacted Konoha officially yet; Naruto has been writing out examples of what he could say but finds himself hitting a brick wall. They have, as per Naruto's request, sent Shikamaru a letter that states they're both very much alive and at peace.

Naruto wants to get on good terms with Konoha and even if it's against Sasuke's ideal plan, he'll take it. Naruto has some excellent thoughts on how to go about their search for justice and if Konoha's pardon is what he needs then he'll put his trust in Naruto. There's an odd sense of Itachi in the way Naruto plans the ordeal and Sasuke feels like there's no other way he would have it.

Now, however, Naruto levels him with a dumbstruck look as he's piling firewood.

" _Teme,_ what the hell," he snaps but it carries no heat. "I'm with you because I want to be."

Sasuke looks at the ground and hears shuffling.

"Don't you dare to think I'm doing this because of some dumb _obligation,_ Sasuke," Naruto crouches in front of him, takes his head in his hands. The night twinkles over them with bright lights. "I'm doing this because I want to. I'm doing this because I have my dreams of making sure no other child will suffer the way we did. I'm doing this because I enjoy being with you. I'm doing this because the world seems like a better place whenever you're close to me."

Sasuke looks at him, into those bright blue eyes and feels dizzy.

"All of this, because I want to," he finishes and points absentmindedly somewhere where scrolls upon scrolls of their planning lie, points between them, points at their backpacks.

Sasuke cradles his neck in his hands, fingers resting against jugulars and is suddenly reminded of the way Naruto used to do just that when they were younger. His eyelids flutter the slightest when he pulls Naruto closer, slots their lips together. Naruto hums in appreciation.

He pulls their foreheads together when the slow kiss ends. Naruto looks at him with wonder in his eyes and the night feels warm.

Sasuke sighs, relief escaping his lips.

 

%

 

Naruto still dreams of Hashirama. They're nonsensical now, mostly, but there are flashes he sees where he laughs with the mad Uchiha, curses when their fists meet, smiles when the other blushes. Hashirama's warm laugh rings in his hear even after he wakes.

He dreams of a river and secret languages, dreams of hidden glances and dreams of Tobirama.

The dreams he has of Tobirama are the ones he anticipates. Naruto knows that the dreams are essentially his own mind supplying him with ideas but there's a thrill in the way Tobirama lays down facts upon facts, poking holes in his and Sasuke's plans. Hashirama helps, too, but there's a fire in the way Tobirama explains Naruto's mistakes and shoots down his ideas.

When he wakes he writes down the notes feverishly, pretends not to notice the way Sasuke looks at him with newfound fondness and pride.

The dreams he has of Madara are, surprisingly, the ones he wants to hold close for a minute longer. They remind him so much of the times before Sasuke left the village; of the times when their biggest concerns were getting the bells from Kakashi, of the times when Naruto tried his best not to let Sasuke notice his glances; of the times neither of them dreamed yet of the ghost of Itachi Uchiha.

Naruto does not know how long Sasuke knew of the motives behind the Uchiha Massacre but guesses it's thanks to the same mysterious crow that plagued his own dreams for years.

Itachi does not appear in his dreams any longer.

 

%

 

"Sasuke!" Naruto yells at him and sprints towards the other from across a clearing, hand clutching a scroll, face determined and smiling.

There's an unmistakable difference in the way Naruto holds himself, now. The fire that was behind his eyes at twelve, thirteen, -  the one  that died out slowly when he turned fifteen - is back. Sasuke can almost taste the way Naruto's unshakeable belief in them is building. If anyone believes in him, _in them_ , it's Naruto.

The day is warm and their moving languid. They have been trekking relatively short distances, enough to keep in motion but slow enough that when the time comes to visit Konoha they won't be too far. Sasuke has pulled his hair back in a ponytail; has disregarded the attire Orochimaru blessed him with and is now wearing nondescript black training clothes.

Naruto sewed the _uchiwa_ on the back of Sasuke's new jacket. Sasuke bit back the question _why not on your clothes as well,_ and buried the thought of _why not combine your whirlpool with mine._

Sasuke tells himself he is _not_ sappy, cheeks burning.

Naruto stops in front of him, face split into a blinding grin, sweat pooling over his collarbones revealed by the mesh on the shirt he's wearing. Sasuke ponders the shirt for a moment, thinks about the necklace in his pocket and shakes his head.

"Everything alright?" Naruto asks, grins. He's holding the scroll with glee.

Sasuke swallows and rips his eyes from the hollow of Naruto's neck, "Yeah. What is it, usuratonkachi _?"_

Naruto smiles like Sasuke said something wonderful instead of an insult as he opens his mouth, "I figured it out," and Sasuke not only digests these words for what they are but also sees the way Naruto has been training the whole day. Naruto does his best thinking whenever he's in movement, face crunched in concentration and muscles flexed and working. His skin is glowing from a good workout, cheeks flushed, hair sticking out wildly in all directions. He has brushed his bangs away from his face but a few strands are falling over his eyes.

Sasuke cocks his head, reads into the answer, asks out of spite, "Figured what out?"

Naruto snorts, "Moron," he grins, "last night I had a very enlightening dream about Tobirama," he continues even if he knows Sasuke does not really approve of him and his dreams about their ancestors and their family relationships, "and I spent the whole day thinking it over."

"You look like you spent the whole day being a brainless idiot," Sasuke states and points at Naruto's scratched, bruising knees. Now that he looks closer it looks a lot like Naruto got attacked by a wild animal. "Boar?"

Naruto scoffs and looks away, face red with embarrassment, "Not my fault it came after me," and suddenly Sasuke can see some leaves stuck in Naruto's hair.

"You climbed a tree to avoid it?" he says, amused.

Naruto looks exasperated and huffs, " _Anyway,_ " he takes a deep breath, "I figured out the plan."

Sasuke's amusement is wiped away by the sudden, overwhelming feeling of _pride._

"And, and I figured out the letter to the Leaf, and, I'm certain they will pardon you now and we can get this thing rolling, we can," he hesitates for a moment, fingers tightening around the scroll, "we can be the kind of- we can assert the kind of leadership Itachi would have wanted. One worthy of what he has done for Konoha."

Sasuke has no idea what to _say._

"I don't know if I'm stepping over some Uchiha clan boundaries here, to be honest," Naruto is rubbing the back of his neck, "but I've been looking at this from, well, his perspective the best I can. I don't, uh, want to say I'm as good as him but his ideas of improving the government and society at large are well thought and. I mean, he used to appear in my dreams and I remember his, his -," Naruto's rambling stops abruptly. "Sasuke?"

Sasuke keeps staring at Naruto and it's like all those years ago; now the impossible dream is not out of his reach anymore and this time he's _certain_ he sees future in the way Naruto's eyes are burning.

" _Gods,"_ Sasuke breathes out when he pulls Naruto flush against him. He wants to say, _You are an honorary Uchiha already, dumbass,_ but instead just licks his way into the blonde's mouth.

Naruto seems to understand anyway and smirks against his lips.

Sasuke's fingers creep to rest on Naruto's collarbones, touch light as a feather. Naruto shivers against the gentle touch and sneaks his own hands around Sasuke's waist.

It's easy, falling into rhythm together like it was something that should have happened years and years ago. Sasuke holds him close and Naruto tries to pull him even closer as if they could turn become one right there and then. Sasuke's left palm feels tingly as he laces his fingers with Naruto's.

The words are dancing on his lips but he dares not say them out loud.

Naruto's face is flushed and lips swollen when Sasuke pulls back the tiniest bit to look into his eyes. The blue seems to engulf him completely and he feels like he's drunk.

"Sas?" Naruto whispers when Sasuke's gaze does not drop. Instead, his right eye whirls into red, black disappearing under the intimidating skill.

"The Sharingan records everything it sees," Sasuke says in a husky voice, "in minute detail."

Naruto flushes even redder, if possible.

"I want to remember this for the rest of my life."

Sasuke pushes Naruto against a nearby tree with controlled motions; the Sharingan granting him a whole new set of senses and sights to keep track of. It's overwhelming but when he _sees_ Naruto's heart hammering in rapid succession in his neck he decides it's definitely worth it, definitely worth using chakra for.

"Your," Naruto gets out between his gasped breaths, "your _sight,"_ he continues, fingers scrambling to get a hold of Sasuke's jacket.

 _For you, anything,_ Sasuke wants to answer but keeps the admission to himself and kisses Naruto instead. He dips the blonde's head the tiniest bit to lick his neck, teeth scraping against the sensitive skin, biting down gently here and there. Naruto shudders and his hands shake.

He gets Sasuke's jacket off and feels a sense of accomplishment until Sasuke positively _rips_ Naruto's own shirt off. Naruto feels it tear the tiniest bit but, oddly, it just turns him on more. Sasuke notices this, of course he does, and his hands attack his hips with bruising touches.

Naruto moans and holds back curse words as Sasuke maneuvers his way around all of Naruto's ticks. Sasuke avoids his crotch the best he can; keeping his own desperate shudders in check and deliberately _not_ letting Naruto touch him either.

Naruto thinks he's going mad.

 _Then_ Sasuke starts to _talk._

"You're gorgeous," he says in a tentative voice and Naruto feels a blush creeping over his neck. Sasuke grins approvingly against his collarbones, his own cheeks red with embarrassment, licks his way back to his lips. He coaxes Naruto's mouth open with his, drags his tongue over Naruto's lips. "You into compliments?"

Naruto tries to level him with a look but he only looks wrecked, breathes out, "You _don't_. Compliment," as Sasuke runs his tongue over Naruto's neck again, settling on his collarbones.

Sasuke hums as an answer and sucks on the skin there, angry marks blooming. Naruto's fingers catch his ponytail and tug. A sudden sigh escapes his lips.

Sasuke chooses to ignore his own reaction, instead watches intently as he continues his mission, "I can't stop staring at your neck," and as if to prove a point, presses his fingers against the soft skin lazily and sloppily kisses Naruto's adam's apple. Naruto takes a shuddering breath.

"It has always been distracting," he adds as if on an afterthought, not sure Naruto will hear it anyway. He bites down and scrapes his teeth against the skin, moves his head lower and settles on Naruto's chest.

He licks and sucks on the muscle there, fingers splayed over Naruto's sides. Sasuke's other hand is resting on Naruto's lower back to catch any movement he tries to make closer or further from Sasuke.

" _Sasuke,_ " Naruto pleads and Sasuke almost wants to ask him to beg. Naruto's fingers are scratching against Sasuke's scalp and Sasuke turns to look at his flushed face.

"Gods," Sasuke repeats the comment from earlier and takes Naruto's nipple between his teeth.

Naruto stares at the Sharingan with half lidded eyes, mouth open in a plea, face open and ears red. There's angry marks on his neck, chest. His lips are swollen and red and Sasuke can _feel_ the way his eyes are taking the sight in.

Sasuke licks Naruto's nipples as if he's telling him _this is beautiful. Your body is wonderfully crafted,_ but can't get the words out. His fingers are scraping Naruto's ribs and Naruto shudders.

Naruto tugs at Sasuke's hair, forces his head to look up. Sasuke's eyes close out of pleasure, sigh escaping his lips and his face turns red. Naruto tightens his hold and Sasuke _moans,_ and it's embarrassing, this is not how this was supposed to happen, so, naturally he takes the initiative.

Sasuke yanks Naruto's pants off of him and drops to his knees in one fluid motion. Naruto gasps as the relatively cold air hits his cock. Sasuke looks him straight in the eyes and tries to will away his own reddened cheeks, his nervousness, his inexperience as he curls his fingers around Naruto.

He licks the underside of Naruto's cock from the base to the leaking tip and Naruto almost comes right there and then just at the sight.

Sasuke doesn't close his eyes because he needs to _see,_ to record Naruto looking so wrecked by him, _because_ of him. He takes Naruto's cock in his mouth languidly and swirls his tongue over the tip, drops his head down and swallows most of Naruto's length.

Naruto's hips buckle and he curses, buries his hand into Sasuke's hair and Sasuke almost wants to swat it away in fear that Naruto would use it as a leverage. He pushes his fingers into Naruto's hips to keep him in place, presses him against the tree trunk behind his back with unnecessary force.

Sasuke bobs his head up and down on Naruto's length and Naruto wonders idly if Sasuke has an oral fixation but the thought is lost very soon as Sasuke's clever tongue works on his cock while also keeping it completely engulfed by his mouth.

He drags Naruto's cock out of his mouth with a painfully slow motion and wraps his fingers around it again, tucks a few times, presses it against his cheek and asks with a hoarse voice, "bastard, like what you see?"

Naruto bites his lip and tries not to blurt out anything stupid.

Sasuke, apparently seeing the answer in the other's eyes, takes him into his mouth again and _deepthroats_ him to the best of his abilities, fingers coming to play with his balls and breath hot against the base of his cock.

Naruto _tears_ at Sasuke's hair, pulls him off of his cock and comes _on Sasuke's face_ with a moan _._

There's a beat of silence.

Naruto feels dizzy, gaze swimming, limbs heavy. His breathing is labored and there's a gnawing sense of _say something! Anything! Shit! I fucked up!_ as he takes in Sasuke's state.

Sasuke's face is covered in cum, Sharingan whirring and cheeks red. He looks positively mortified, fingers digging into Naruto's hipbones still.

"Uh," Naruto says elegantly and drops down to Sasuke's eye level. "Do you want me to," he says as his fingers twitch closer to Sasuke's crotch.

" _No,"_ Sasuke says and swats his hand away, face turning an even deeper shade of crimson. He avoids Naruto's gaze. "I. Uh."

"Sasuke?" he asks, uncertain if his touches are wanted after all.

Sasuke looks at him with burning eyes as he grits out, "I came in my pants, _okay_ , bastard?"

"At- uh. At the sight of- Or at, the, oral fix- ah, no. You," he gulps, "at the sight of me?"

Sasuke looks away and hopes it's a confirmation enough, not wanting to address it was because of that _and_ because Naruto almost yanked out a good chunk of his hair.

Naruto takes a good look at his face, pushes closer and before Sasuke can pull away, _licks_ at the drying cum there. Sasuke's eye is whirring with interest and he looks shellshocked as Naruto cleans his face. It's almost arousing, and it _would be,_ if he hadn't come so hard just few moments ago when he realized he definitely has a thing for hair pulling.

Sasuke seems to snap out of the haze he has entered, "Gross," he grumbles and pushes Naruto off but Naruto catches the look.

 

%

 

The day of departing the weird bubble they've entered is closing in. Sasuke feels a weird sense of resignation as he looks around the clearing they are occupying and takes in the green grass, tall trees and Naruto hunched over a punch of scrolls. It has been peaceful, nice even, to spend days with Naruto by his side.

The world doesn't stop, however, when they do.

The nations are still the same they have always been, there is still no word from Konoha regarding the Uchiha Massacre and Itachi's stance, no consolation for Naruto's treatment. No reason to believe the villages are not neglecting other children as well. No evidence the Kages even _acknowledge_ the mistakes they have made.

Sasuke is looking at his own scrolls while Naruto tries his best to word out the perfect plea. Sasuke feels iffy about the whole deal, still, but Naruto had convinced him that it was a thing they must gain. Naruto is much, much better with political relations than Sasuke so their tasks have divided up naturally.

Naruto has been making sure all is fine on their end and, Sasuke, well.

He has been pouring over maps over maps to list down hidden villages, possible locations of people he finds useful, scribbling down strategies to back up the ideas Naruto has shared him with; essentially, he has been moving chess pieces on the board to understand better what they're after. He is much better with tactics and almost enjoys working with a commander's rank.

Sasuke hears shuffling from his right but does not react. He feels arms sneaking around his shoulders, a warm weight against his back. Naruto's lips press against his ear.

"It's late," he whispers and Sasuke looks at the setting Sun. He hadn't noticed, at all, how dark the evening was turning already.

Sasuke does not answer vocally but gets up from the ground nonetheless, stretches the tiniest bit. Back aching and eyes  straining he turns to Naruto, who's already beginning to lie down. Sasuke kicks his long pants off and takes his shirt off, too. He fiddles with the scrolls for the tiniest bit, tucking them away and safe and glancing with approval at Naruto's pile.

He settles down next to Naruto, worries the blanket between his fingers and decides on taking Naruto's hand; entwining their fates together.   

Naruto just stares at him with intense, kind eyes. Sasuke moves his other hand to rest against Naruto's cheek. Naruto blushes under his gentle touch as Sasuke caresses his scars, smiles hidden by his blanket. Naruto leans over and presses a kiss on his lips.

The night is warm.

The upcoming days not so much.

 

%

 

"What even was that thing you wanted to tell me back then," Sasuke grumbles when they walk towards Konoha's gates together.

The day is warm and the sweet fragrance of apples hits Sasuke's nose. Small pink flowers with yellow stamens frame the path they're walking on.

The plan Naruto laid out for them is a perfect middle ground between Sasuke's lust for mindless revenge and the way Naruto wanted to use more peaceful ways. It's a plan they honed to perfection together and Sasuke is sure Itachi would approve of it. This makes him feel warm; he wants to be worthy of his brother's unconditional love.

Naruto smiles at him, warmth spilling over. Konoha had pardoned Sasuke. It leaves a bitter taste in his mouth.

Sasuke feels like it should be the other way around.

"Oh?" Naruto's cheeks are flushed, expression unreadable. "Just, uh."

Sasuke glowers at him and Naruto laughs.

"It's dumb," he says and bites back a smile. His previously tired features have gained some of the life back into them; his body is full of new scars and wounds that will surely take time to heal but his eyes are clear, determined and full of emotion.

"Spit it out," Sasuke nudges his shoulder.

"I wanted to tell you that I," Naruto starts, pauses, cheeks red. They have stopped walking and the wind is blowing Naruto's long hair from his face, blond strands golden in the sunlight. Sasuke struggles to breathe.

Sunlight makes Naruto's skin glow, blue eyes gorgeous in the way light hits them. His smile is unreserved and open, fingers itching towards Sasuke's.

Naruto's eyes crinkle as he smiles and suddenly Sasuke knows exactly what he's going to say.

Sasuke grabs his arm and pulls Naruto against him, meeting his lips halfway, swallowing the words. He smiles into the kiss.

Their marked hands find each other and it feels like _home._

**Author's Note:**

> eglantine; i wound to heal.  
> [come say hi.](http://vultuers.tumblr.com/)


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